Are You Internally Motivated?

The Externally Motivated Athlete

In the fall of 2015, Calvin Broudus, rapper Snoop Dogg’s son, left the UCLA football team. Broudus was one of the top receivers in the country, and he had been recruited out of high

school. The athlete made an announcement that he was leav ing the team. Broudus said he had come to the realization that he had believed football was the only way to get his father’s love. He went on to say that on his birthday his father told him that he loved him for who he was, whether a football player or not. Broudus then decided to stop playing football for one of the country’s top-ranked college football teams. It was a very revealing turn of events, and gives us insight into motivation, relationships, and how dramatically all of this can impact how you approach the game.

This psychological breakthrough for Broudus yielded life changing clarity in his relationship to football. More importantly, it gave the athlete clarity about himself as a human being and about his relationship to his father. Broadus had external motivation to play football: to gain the approval and recognition of his father.

My hope is that parents are supportive, and don’t pressure children to play sports or withhold love if they are not successful. However, this is not always the case. Other external motivators are things such as money, awards, recognition, and even just to attract members of the opposite sex.

Broadus realized that he did not have a personal motivation to play football, and that he only did it for the affection of his father. One may wonder if he even enjoyed playing at all, and if he’d had this revelation earlier, would he have stopped playing then?

Understand What Motivates You

What is motivation? Where does it come from? Why are you motivated? Are you motivated by positive consequences (win ning)? Or are you motivated by negative experiences (losing, or fearing that you may lose)?

HOW TO PLAY THE BEST GAME OF YOUR LIFE DR. JOHN J. CARROLL

Understanding what motivates you is the most valuable self-awareness you can have. As you get ready for your sea son, important questions to ask yourself are “What motivates me?” and “Why am I playing my sport this year?” (Additional questions related to motivation are provided at the end of this chapter.) We are all motivated for different reasons, and it is important for you to know why in your case. I say this because oftentimes we are motivated for negative reasons instead of positive ones.

On some level, like Calvin Broadus, we are all motivated to gain our parents’ approval, and to impress those around us. Some of us do it negatively (against our own desires) and some do it positively (in line with what we want for ourselves). We can do this through a variety of avenues other than athletics too. Of course you could choose academics, music, art, and anything else to gain recognition and attention from those close to you and the world. Some of us break the law and act out at parties just to gain external recognition and attention.

If we continue to use Broudus as an example, imagine if he were to continue playing for his father’s attention, and sub sequently were to have a serious injury? How do you think his father would feel then? Do you think either of them would want that? Especially if Calvin was only doing it for his father. I don’t think Snoop Dogg would want that at all.

When Broudus was assured of the affection of his father, he went on to do things he enjoyed. He ended up pursuing a creative field in fashion, and now both he and his father are happy. In any case, you need to do what’s right for yourself; otherwise, you won’t be happy or successful at whatever you are doing.

Are You Internally Motivated?

Are you the type of player who shoots baskets in the backyard for hours on end, time disappearing, and you could go on forever? Are you the kind of player who voluntarily does workouts on the weekends and early mornings without your parents or coaches telling you? Are you the type of player who, if you are losing, loves the challenge of performing better to get back in the win column?

In so many words, all of this is Internal or Intrinsic Motivation. Internal Motivation is when you love the game for playing’s sake. You love shooting free throws, practicing shots, going to the gym, being on the field, and even the hard parts of practice have some enjoyment for you. If for fun you picked up a baseball bat, a lacrosse stick, a hockey stick, or a basketball when you were younger and just couldn’t stop playing until your parents told you to come in for dinner, and that is still essentially how you approach the game, you are an internally motivated athlete.

The Externally Motivated Athlete

I remember an athlete at my high school who was one of the most talented players in the school. He played soccer and baseball. Though this player was talented, he would whine, or throw tantrums, when things did not go his way. Even things like making a bad throw or kick. No matter what he did, it was never good enough for himself. And when he made a mistake or struck out, he would react with body language that stated, “I’m above striking out. There’s something wrong with the bat!” One time he hit a pop fly into the infield and marched straight to the bench instead of running to first base. He was frustrated but also felt entitled to assume that he’d be tagged out. The coach summarily benched him.

HOW TO PLAY THE BEST GAME OF YOUR LIFE DR. JOHN J. CARROLL

As it turns out, this player’s father put extraordinary pressure on him, and the player never felt good enough. Notice how this was a feeling, not a reality, as he was always one of the most talented players in whichever sport he chose. He internalized this negative belief and never appeared to enjoy playing, was always complaining to refs, and of course no one enjoyed playing with him. His behavior was definitely not good for team chemistry, as he had an air of entitlement, that regardless of his performance he should get what he wanted. Although it appeared as if he had high standards and disappointed himself, in actuality he was drawing attention to himself and disrupting team chemistry and focus. No one likes a sore loser, and no one wants to play with a sore loser.

It really didn’t look like he enjoyed soccer or baseball—it always came across like he had something to prove, and that’s not a team-winning attitude. If you have something to prove, you’re not putting the team first, your teammates see it, and they don’t want to play with athletes like that. After his college career had ended, he bought an expensive, overly macho big car. He still had something to prove, even after his playing days were over. He was never happy as he didn’t know what really drove him to succeed, and he didn’t know what he enjoyed doing.

HAVING FUN WHILE BEING SERIOUS

Here is a Sports Psychology Paradox: you can have fun and be totally serious. This might sound like a contradiction, but some of the most competitive players—Kevin Garnett, Magic Johnson, Larry Bird, Rob Gronkowski—are real jokesters and pranksters. But no one would think that they do not take the game seriously. Rob Gronkowski was always goofing around, dancing and saying funny things on

the sidelines and in the locker room, but when he was on the field, he was all business. How does this contradiction make sense? He loved playing the game and had fun doing it, so no one was going to question how much he wanted to put into practice and the game. This is a great example of an athlete who played for the right reasons. He loved to grind, but he also loved to have fun off the field and do his thing. None of it is harmful as long as it’s done in a healthy and fun way.

The Interplay between Internal & External Motivation

Questions to Help You Understand Your Motivation 1. Why do I play my sport?

2. What drives me to do well?

3. Am I driven because I love playing?

it was for the love of the game.

2. Set yourself and your team up for success (especially in training and practice): (a) have realistic goals, (b) control training and practice to have as much success as possible, (c) do the easy things first, then move on to efforts of greater difficulty.

3. Have contrast to your routines and the doldrums of the sea son. Suggest to your coach that you need to “mix it up and have some fun.” Tell him I told you so. You need contrast. Players stop wanting to play and work hard when “it feels like a job” or “it’s just not a game anymore.”